Guard for router machines



y 1946- DAMATO SALVATORE 2,399,707

GUARD FOR ROUTER MACHINES v Filed Dec. 1, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 y 7, 1946- D AMATC SALVATORE 2,399,707

GUARD FOR ROUTER MACHINES File d Dec 1, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Salvqitore,

Patented May 7, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,399,707 GUARD FOR ROUTER MACHINES DAmato Salvatore, Youngstown, Ohio Application December 1, 1944, Serial No. 566,161

2 Claims.

This invention relates to guards or shields for machinery utilizing drills or the like, and more particularly to a guardfor protecting the face of the operatOr of a router machine.

As is probably well-known to those skilled in the art, router machines are of the type having jointed arms radiating from a central pedestal, and which arms carry at their outer ends motordriven tools, such as drills, cutters, and the like, the said motor head being manipulated by anoperator over a table or support on which sheets of metal or other material are stacked for shaping or fabrication according to a particular pattern. In operation these tools often throw off oil or fragments of material likely to injure the operator. Of course, it is well-known to equip individual operators of various machines with masks having transparent visors, but the disadvantages of these protectivedevices are more or less well-known to workers required to use them. For example, such masks must be attached to the head of the wearer by a strap or band, and even though the visor of the mask is provided with a hinge which permits its being lifted when desired, nevertheless, when a mask of this type is worn over a period of hours, it becomes annoying' and, in some instances, painful while at the same time it often becomes soiled or collects moisture condensation thereby constituting more or less of a nuisance in being taken off to clean and again put on.

Accordingly the present invention has primarily in view a novel form of guard or shield which may be attached to the motor-head of an apparatus of the type set forth in such a way as to not interfere with or impede the operation of the machine, while, at the same time, providing the operator with an adequate range of vision and protecting his face and eyes from oil, cuttings or other dislodged fragments of material, and also relieving the operator of the necessity of wearing a mask. In the latter connection, it Will be apparent that from the standpoint of economy and efliciency, it is more desirable to equip the machine with a guard or shield rather than to supply numerous individual operators with as many shields. In other words, when a machine is equipped with a single guard of the present invention, an unmasked operator can always operate the machine, thereby reducing the accident hazard to all operators since frequently some operators, even though provided with masks, will not wear them as instructed.

A further object of the invention is to provide a simple and practical form of guard which may be readily manufactured and easily installed on the machine, and whose life is equal to that of the machine, and at all times is in efiect a part of the permanent equipment rather than the equipment of an individual.

With the above and other objects in view, which will more readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same con sists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated, and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of the invention isshown in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the improved guard.

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof.

Figure 3 is a front elevation of the motorhead of the router machine showing the guard in position.

Figure 4 is a side elevation of the construction shown in Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a top plan view of the construction shown in Figure 3.

Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

Referring first to Figures. 1 and 2, it will be ob* served that the improved guard preferably consists of a body portion l formed at its, upper side with a reduced attachin portion or neck 2 havthe ma chine.

The body I may be made of any appropriate material, such as aluminum or the like, and is provided with an opening of appropriate shape to receive a window or area 5 of transparent material, for example, any well-known clear plastic or like material, not likely to shatter or break. The window may be held in place in any convenient way, such, for instance, by an appropriate frame and fastenings or fastenings alone. At each side of the window 5 the body I is provided with substantially vertical notches 6 and 1 whose open ends are directed downwardly, whereby the body may be fitted over the control arms of the machine, as will be seen from Figure 3, thereby assisting in holding the guard in place, and permitting the lower portion of the guard to extend downwardly as far as possible without interfering with the operation of the tool head.

at one end of the radial vertically d horizontally dirigible supporting arm R and th latter is equipped with the forwardly and upwardly extending control handles 8 and 9, the said upwardly extended portions being connected by a transverse bar or member which in turn supports a further handle or grip element Ii. In use the upstanding portions of the handles 8 and 9 are gripped by the operator to freely manipulate the motorcasing over a table T orlthe like on which the work is positioned. The-control handle H is intended to be grasped by the thumb of the operator's hand which grasps the handle 8. The motor is provided at its lower end with a selected tool, such, for example, as the cutter or drill I2, which operates on the Work and which, of course, can be raised and lowered at the will of the operator through handles 8 and 9.

When the guard is secured in position, as shown in Figure 3, it will be apparent that the notches 6 and 1 fit over the handles 8 and 9 and rest thereon while the lower edge of the guard terminates substantially at the point of the chuck which holds the tool. The operator, in manipulating the apparatus assumes a forwardly leaning stance so that he 'views the work and the tool l2 from an oblique angle downwardly through the window 5. In other words, the table T and the work thereon, as well as the lower limits of the motor casing M, are substantially in the zone of the operator's torso while his face i above the level of the motor M, thereby permitting him to freely look down upon the work through the window and the tool from such an angle that any fragmentation resulting from the operation at hand will not fly into his eyes or face and cause bodily harm or injury.

While the present guard is shown and described as including an opaque body with a transparent window, nevertheless, it will be Well understood, that it i entirely within the scope of the present invention to make the entire guard of transparent material. In that case, however, the mechanical features of the guard arestill adhered to. That is to say, a guard made entirely of transparent material would still be provided with the attaching portion or shank 2 and the notches 6 and "l for fitting over the handles 8 and B in order to interpose an adequate shield or guard between the machine and the operator. Also the upper attaching portion would still have fastening receiving openings to enable the upper part of the guard to be secured to the motor casing.

Without further description, it is believed that the features and the advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and it will, of course, be understood that changes in the form, proportion, and minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A fragmentation guard for the tool heads of router machines and the like, comprising, in combination with the motor casing of the tool head and the spaced. forwardly and upwardly extending control handles thereof, a shield including a body having vertically disposed downwardly opening notches inwardly of its side edges, the sides of said notches fitting over and their closed ends resting on said handles, an upwardly extending medial attaching portion adapted to be secured to the casing, and a transparent window in the body below said attaching portion and between the notches for exposing the tool position in the tool head.

2. A fragmentation guard for the tool heads of router machines and the like, comprising, in combination with the motor casing of the tool head and the spaced forwardly and upwardly extending control handles thereof, a fragmentation guard carried by the tool head between the tool and the operator's position, said guard comprising a relatively wide transversely arcuate body extending to either side of the tool position of the tool head, thereby to intercept the trajectory of particles thrown off by the tool, said body having vertically disposed downwardly opening notches inwardly of its side edges, the sides of said notches fitting over and their closedends resting on said handles, an upwardly directed medial attaching portion of reduced area relative to the bodythereby to permit free manual access to the rear of the tool head, means for attaching the said upwardly directed medial portion to the casing of the tool head, said attaching portion and notches imparting stability to the mounting of the guard on the tool head, and a transparent window inthe body below the attaching portion and between the notches for exposing the tool position in the tool head.

DAMATO SALVATORE. 

